Marco Cecchinato has been banned from tennis for 18 months and fined £33,500 after being found guilty of match-fixing.

The world No 143, who was a fourth-man reserve for his country’s Davis Cup team last week, is one of three Italians banned, along with Riccardo Accardi and Antonio Campo.

Accardi was handed a 12-month ban and £16,750 fine, while Campo was banned for four months and fined £8,375.

Cecchinato, the most well-known of the trio, was found guilty of altering the outcome of his match against Poland’s Kamil Majchrzak at the ATP Challenger event in Morocco in October to benefit from illegal betting, and several other instances of sports corruption.

He can appeal against the ruling, but will not be allowed to play until January 17, 2018 if his appeal is unsuccessful.

“Cecchinato has altered… the results of his singles tennis match against Kamil Majchrzak at the ATP Challenger in Mohammedia in 2015, as well as his doubles match, played with Luca Vanni against Betov-Elgin, in the ATP Challenger in Prostejov, also in 2015,” the Italian tennis federation said in a statement.

“In addition to altering the results of those matches, Cecchinato was found guilty of giving confidential information about the upcoming match between Andreas Seppi and John Isner at the 2015 Roland Garros, and on a match of player Lorenzo Frigerio on the occasion of a Future ITF tournament.”

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